On March 26, the Supreme Court maintained a directive from the Biden administration aimed towards curbing the spread of unregistered and untraceable ‘ghost guns.’ These weapons have given federal authorities more control over the trade in weapon assembly kits and parts. In the case of Bondi v. VanDerStok, the court ruled in favor of the rule by a majority of 7-2 votes and thereby gave the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) the green light to enforce a 2022 regulation addressing a growing safety crisis, as described by law enforcement agencies.
The majority opinion was penned by Justice Neil Gorsuch, whose document spanned 24 pages. This approach was seconded by the liberal wing of the court, bolstered by conservative justices John Roberts, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. The conclusion arrived at by Justice Gorsuch was that the ATF has the jurisdiction to regulate not only fully operational firearms but also armaments that are intended to function as guns, or could be readily altered to do so.
Two justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, objected to the decision, suggesting overreach by the ATF. Ghost guns have become more prevalent in the last decade, as evidenced by data revealing an increase in the quantity intercepted and handed to the ATF for tracing – from around 1,600 in 2017 to more than 27,000 in 2023.
Justice Gorsuch highlighted the ‘explosion of crimes’ encountered by police departments throughout the U.S. involving ghost guns. Tracing these guns due to their lack of serial numbers presents a significant hurdle for law enforcement. The ATF rule, enacted in August of 2022, shifted the ‘firearm’ definition’s boundaries to encompass weapons kits and nearly complete frames and receivers. These are the key elements of a gun that have potential for swift conversion into functioning firearms.
This crucial modification subjected these kits to the same control measures as standard firearms, including background checks for potential buyers and the allocation of serial numbers. This court decision was a disappointment to supporters of gun rights and producers of ghost gun kits, who found themselves in its crosshairs.
Justice Gorsuch, speaking for the majority, described Polymer80’s ‘Buy Build Shoot’ kit, a package that provides every necessary component to construct a semiautomatic pistol with similarities to a Glock. This kit, however, requires end-user assembly. Despite this, several factors convinced the majority that the ‘Buy Build Shoot’ kit is, in fact, considered a ‘weapon.’
While the Supreme Court’s ruling concludes a number of debates regarding the legitimacy of the ATF rule on ghost guns, it still leaves room for its potential revocation by the Trump administration. President Trump has directed the Justice Department to examine the gun reform measures installed by the Biden administration, including the rule on ghost guns. This directive is in response to concerns that these initiatives may infravene on individuals’ right to bear arms.
Ghost guns have been involved in numerous notorious shooting incidents in recent years. Crime reports reveal a scenario in midtown Manhattan in December where a powerful executive in United Healthcare, Brian Thompson, tragically lost his life to such a firearm. A public shooting event in Philadelphia in 2023 involving a ghost gun modeled after an AR-15 ended with five casualties.
Also of note, a 16-year-old high school student from Santa Clarita, California, turned a school campus into a shooting site in 2019. The student used a ghost gun to murder two schoolmates, with three more suffering injuries. As this particular case came under the scrutiny of the Supreme Court, 20 of the country’s largest cities pushed for the rule alteration, attributing it to a drop in crimes connected to ghost guns.
Baltimore police reported that the frequency of ghost gun discoveries in 2023 fell by 26 percent compared to the previous year. This was the first time the numbers had decreased since 2019. However, despite the ruling and these hopeful statistics, the Supreme Court explicitly suggested the likelihood of future legal confrontations.
In his verdict, Justice Gorsuch cautioned that the rule might not cover all types of gun kits available in the market. This reminder suggests that despite the court’s decision, the issue of ghost guns and the broader conversation around gun regulation in the United States is far from settled
The post Supreme Court Upholds Biden’s Ghost Gun Regulation appeared first on Real News Now.
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